There has been a long felt need for developing a method and apparatus for processing the surface of a semiconductor material impregnated with a dopant to create a high speed semiconductor device having a very shallow depth dopant diffusion factor. The apparatus and methods disclosed in the foregoing mentioned copending applications relate to such a system for meeting this need.
It would be highly desirable to utilize the system and equipment described in these copending applications for the treatment of other types and kinds of material surfaces as well. For example, it would be highly advantageous to employ the highly intense ultraviolet light for use in cleaning surfaces of vehicles, particularly of toxic chemical warfare agents.
While prior known vehicle cleaning techniques have been successful for some applications, it has been difficult, if not impossible, to employ conventional cleaning techniques for refinishing the surface of large air and sea vehicles, such as certain aircraft, ships, or the like, without moving the vehicle to a special processing area, due to various pollutants created during the refinishing process. The pollutants include not only air borne particles and debris which are removed from the surface of the vehicle being treated, but also includes water or sand being discharged forcefully against the surface being cleaned and organic (chlorinated hydrocarbon) solvents used in stripping epoxy and polyurethane paints. Such pollution is, of course, undesirable and unwanted, and is prohibited by laws or regulations in the United States in certain situations. Thus, when a vehicle requires refinishing, it is desirable to enclose the vehicle in a special processing shed or hanger to avoid contaminating the general environment with the pollutants formed by the dislodged coating materials and substances.
Therefore, it would be highly desirable to have a new and improved system which enables a vehicle to be stripped of unwanted and undesired coating materials and substances, without using high velocity jet-streams which would otherwise produce air borne particles or other pollutants as the coating materials being removed from the surface of the vehicle. Such an improved system employing the ultraviolet light techniques disclosed in the foregoing mentioned patent applications, should not require special vehicle enclosures such as a processing hanger or shed or toxic paint stripping chemicals.
In other surface treating applications, such as in the manufacture of metallic parts, there are various steps involved in processing the surface of such parts. One such step, relates to glazing the surface of the metallic part to give it a hardened durable finish. While the prior known techniques employed to accomplish such a processing step have been acceptable for some applications, they have not been entirely satisfactory.
One attempted solution to the conventional metal glazing techniques was to use a laser to scan and to heat the surface of the material. While this technique tends to localize heating, it has proven to be less than entirely satisfactory in certain applications to provide the desired durability. Moreover, the cost of the lasers required to achieve the necessary rapid heating for glazing purposes, has proven to be a relatively expensive, and the glazing technique is unduly complex. In this regard, trained and skilled personnel are required to operate the expensive laser equipment.
Metal glazing is employed for certain intricate parts that having holes, apertures, and recesses. For example, in the manufacture of engine blocks, it is very desirable to glaze the cylinder walls of the block to improve the durability of the wear surfaces.
Thus, there are a variety of different types and kinds of surfaces requiring improved forms of treatments. Thus, it would be highly desirable to achieve such improved forms of treatment through the use of high intensity ultraviolet light.